Parabajava | Firestone Walker Brewing Co.

0 characters.
We love reviews! Turn your rating into one with ≥ 150 characters. Awesome. Thanks for the review!

In English, explain why you're giving this rating. Your review must discuss the beer's attributes (look, smell, taste, feel) and your overall impression in order to indicate that you have legitimately tried the beer. Nonconstructive reviews may be removed without notice and action may be taken on your account.

Notes / Commercial Description:
Parabajava ia an ongoing series exploring the infusion of coffee into our Parabola Barrel Aged Imperial Series. This first offering is a collaboration with the famed Intelligentsia Coffee Company, utilizing their El Diablo espresso blend. This beer was crated for our June 16th Father’s Day brunch at Lot 213 in L.A. The coffee brings intense coffee house espress aroma - roasty carmel, toffee, molasses and fresh ground coffee notes. The flavor melds well with the big rich character of the stout - complementary roasty flavors, dark baker’s chocolate, and more caramel which pairs well with Parabola’s rich malt and smokey oak bourbon notes. The finish is amazingly smooth and integrated.

Pours a mild fizzy darker head that fades semi quickly, a touch of lacing but long legs, very dark beer but some brown light coming through the thin parts and the pour

Nose is like an aged bourbon barrel stout, lots of dark chocolate, cocoa, roasted malts but softer aged roasted, some roasted coffee but not a ton, roasted earthy coffee, a bit of char, nutty coffee and or beer, caramel toffee and sweet malts, a bit of aged complex soft malts but dark malts, mild vanilla barrel and some sweet bourbon, a little toasted biscuity malts

Taste brings bitter roasted malts and a bit of char, roasted coffee beans but not a ton, roasted malts bringing bitterness and a bit of char, some cocoa and dark chocolate, baker's bitter chocolate, a bit creamy as well, a little burnt caramel and toffee, fudgey a bit, almost like cocoa nibs, a bit of alcohol but not a lot, mild vanilla barrel notes and a touch of sweet bourbon, not much, a bit of candy and some soft aged malt feels. Finishes sweet but not really sticky, a bit of tingly alcohol, plenty of dark chocolate, some roasted malts and coffee, bitterness from roast.

Mouth is fuller bod but not very rich and thick, decent carb, some tingly warming alcohol

Overall mixed, some nice big beer characters, decent coffee although it obviously fell off, although I think there would have been too much roast and acrid that seems to have died off, alcohol is still prevalent, barrel seems to have tapered off or was not much to begin with, although it added a nice soft aged complex malt, mouth was def too thin as I expected a nice rich chew thick mouth. Need to try it fresh to compare someday.

Overall - this was one of my MOST looked forward to beers that I traded for in the last year and a half. Sadly, while solid, it's nothing great and comes as a pretty big letdown for the stature it's known for.